Jayda’s journey to success

Junior free safety and wide receiver Jayda Downer has played a major role in the success of the Cedar Shoals varsity flag football team that has started the season with an 11-5 record. 

Since last season Downer has made many different changes to the way she keeps her body healthy and ready to compete at a high level, attributing her performance to these efforts.

“Keeping my body 100% healthy, I also went to summer conditioning which allowed me to be in shape by the time we started practicing,” Downer said.

Downer stays dedicated to the game on the field and on her own time at home. Her younger brother Jackson Downer believes that their dad, Darius Downer, is one of the main influences in Jayda’s flag football career.

“He’s taught her, in general, about how to play her position right and effectively. He told her to never stop trying and always be persistent,” Jackson said.

Over the past two years of Jayda playing flag football, she has improved in many different areas of her game due to her discipline and work ethic. 

“She’s very disciplined. She’s very coachable, and whenever she gets told something she fixes it right away,” student coach Liam Mask, junior, said.

Downer has improved her game from listening to coaches and peers. Being able to take criticism from her coaches and other players has helped her become a role model to younger players that don’t have as much experience. She says they need guidance and encouragement.

“I try to tell them when they’re wrong and give them room for improvement, with our varsity we’re able to tell each other when we’re wrong, so I’ve been able to communicate with them as well as give them reassurance,” Downer said.

Downer’s younger brother Jackson has seen improvements in Downer’s school life and personal life after being involved in flag football. Jackson believes that his sister knows what she needs to do in order to be successful.

“She has taken her school work and what she needs to do at home into actual seriousness and actually implied herself because she wants to improve and she has specific goals that she wants to accomplish,” Jackson said.

Downer has been one of the most dominant players on the team in the past two years on both offense and defense. Mask sees her impact on the team during gameplay and on the sidelines.

“Jayda has contributed to the team by scoring, getting big gains when needed, and overall, just being a morale boost for the entire team,” Mask said.

The flag team has been coordinated with their game plans, all of the players have roles and know what they need to do and when to do it. Downer attributes the team’s success to an atmosphere where everyone helps each other with constructive criticism.

“We all share the same values when it comes to flag, so we all take accountability for our mistakes, communicate and fix them so we are able to play to the best of our ability,” Downer said.